Jubilee Sailing Trust launches £1m emergency appeal

A charity which offers people with disabilities the opportunity to sail on tall ships says it needs £1m by the end of the week in order to survive. The Southampton-based Jubilee Sailing Trust has brought together mixed ability crews for more than 40 years. A statement said it had suffered "substantial mechanical issues" with its two tall ships and "poor uptake" of its activities. It said if it failed raise enough money, it would "cease immediately". The charity's two vessels, STS Lord Nelson and SV Tenacious, were specially designed and fitted to allow people with physical impairments - including wheelchair users - to sail side-by-side with people who not have disabilities. It takes crews on voyages around the UK and Europe as well as the Caribbean. In 2012, Lord Nelson set off on a two-year circumnavigation visiting 30 countries. Tenacious took part in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant the same year. 'Sad conclusion' In a statement, the trustees said the charity faced "very serious challenges". "If we are unable to reach this target, then it is likely the JST's activities will cease immediately," it said. "This would, of course, be a very sad conclusion to four amazing decades of such important and ground-breaking work."

Southport Sailing Club-Junior 12hr race 2019.short edit.

Round The Island Race 2019 Highlights

UK Europe Class Nationals & Training 2019

The countdown is on for the RYA Sailability Multiclass Regatta 2019

There’s just a week to go until the UK’s biggest disability sailing event comes to the south west coast. More than 100 sailors are set to descend on the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy (WPNSA), home of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, next weekend (05-07 July). First staged in 2007, the regatta is now the UK’s biggest disability sailing event of its kind, and will see sailors of varying abilities take to the water for a memorable weekend of sailing and socialising. Competitors range from those who have competed at an international level to beginners just getting started, as they come together in a celebration of everything that is possible on the water. Alongside the fleet racing and the annual Ken Ellis Pursuit Race, there will be a whole host of opportunities for participants to try sailing, racing and to get out on the water. RYA Sailability Manager, Joff McGill said: “This year’s RYA Sailability Multiclass Regatta is set to be bigger than ever before, with more opportunities to take part and in excess of 100 sailors set to get afloat at the WPNSA. “We’d like to thank our partners and the team of more than 100 volunteers that will be offering their support over the weekend. It simply wouldn’t be possible without them. “The event is always a highlight in the RYA Sailability calendar, it’s evolved over the years and is now a real festival for disabled sailing and a celebration of the impact sailing can have. It really is #MoreThanSailing and can change lives.” For more information about all the different activities on offer at this year’s RYA Sailability Multiclass Regatta, the notice of race and to enter visit www.rya.org.uk/go/multiclass. To find out more about sailing opportunities for disabled people or those that need specific support to get on-the-water visit www.rya.org.uk/sailability.

Plans for £3m coastal activity centre given go-ahead

Plans for a £3m coastal activity centre in Whitehaven have been given the green light today. Members of Copeland’s planning panel voted 8-1 in favour of the ambitious scheme following a site visit this morning. The three-story activity centre will be built on the current Wellington car park, at West Strand, next to the harbour. It will include multi-use spaces, changing and toilet facilities, a classroom and accommodation. Under the plans, an equipment storage compound will be built with storage spaces for canoes, kayaks and sailing dinghies. The project will also see the creation of a cycle workshop and a new slipway into Whitehaven’s outer harbour. A car park with 17 spaces will also be included, which the public will be able to use. The building will be characterised by an innovative and distinctive design inspired by local sandstone blocks.

Nipegegi round Britain

GC32 Racing Tour 2019 - TV Episode #1

Defending champions return for next week's GC32 World Championship

The 2019 World Championship for the GC32 flying catamaran class sets sail from the historic port of Lagos close to the southwesternmost tip of Europe on Portugal's Algarve coast next week over 26-30th June. Taking place with the support of the City of Lagos, Marina de Lagos and Sopromar, this year's GC32 World Championship is the second event of the 2019 GC32 Racing Tour, following on from last month's GC32 Villasimius Cup. Ten teams are set to contest this second official GC32 World Championship. Returning to defend their World Championship title is Switzerland's Team Tilt, skippered by Olympic 49er sailor Sébastien Schneiter. Due to his Olympic commitments, Schneiter admits they are under-practiced. To rectify this they are already in Lagos, aiming to get in 10 days training: "This is crucial for us. If we can put some good hours in the boat then we will have a good chance to win again. In fact it is exactly the same as we did last year and that worked pretty well!" Schneiter adds: "We definitely know the boat and how to sail it. We know each other super well. It is just about getting back into it to see what we can do." Significantly, returning to the team will be Emirates Team New Zealand skipper and multiple A-Class Catamaran World Champion, Glenn Ashby. As to the line-up Team Tilt will face, Schneiter says: "Generally the level is higher with some new teams like INEOS and the Chinese, more and more professional with some America's Cup sailors, etc. It is motivating to race against them." With the demise of the Extreme Sailing Series, so the GC32 Racing Tour has inherited its teams and it was one, Oman Air, that claimed last month's GC32 Villasimius Cup. The Omani team's new skipper, Adam Minoprio is looking forward to Lagos: "Oman Air has a new crew this year, so we were very pleased to win the first event. We definitely have a lot of areas where we can improve and we have to keep improving if we want to beat the fleet again in Lagos." Last year Minoprio helmed SAP Extreme Sailing Team at the GC32 Worlds in Riva del Garda. At one point they were leading, but finished second. "Being runner-up last year was very disappointing for me, but this year I have a very good team, so if we can take the title, we'd be very happy." Also certain to be strong is Switzerland's most famous sailing team - Ernesto Bertarelli's Alinghi. In Villasimius the two time America's Cup winners finished second and were strongly on the ascent on the final day. Then there are the leading teams from last year's GC32 Racing Tour, overall winner NORAUTO helmed by Volvo Ocean Race winning skipper Franck Cammas and INEOS Rebels UK of the world's most successful Olympic sailor Sir Ben Ainslie, now leading his second America's Cup challenge, INEOS Team UK. NORAUTO returns to the Algarve as winner last year in Lagos, while for INEOS it will enable then to gauge how they have improved - they made their GC32 Racing Tour debut here a year ago. "Lagos will be a great venue. We had very tight racing here last year and it being a World Championship, the racing can only be more competitive," says INEOS Rebels UK tactician Giles Scott. In addition to their haul of Olympic medals, Ainslie and Scott also understand the importance of World Championships: Between them they have won ten World titles in the Finn class alone. Hoping to improve on their performance from Villasimius will be Red Bull Sailing Team, run by Austrian two time Olympic Tornado gold medallist Roman Hagara and Hans-Peter Steinacher and CHINAone NINGBO, skippered by Phil Robertson with three Chinese crew on board. Jockeying for the owner-driver prize will be Erik Maris' Zoulou and American Jason Carroll's Argo, plus another new team to the GC32 Racing Tour this season, Christian Zuerrer's Black Star Sailing Team. With racing over four days starting on 27th June, the GC32 World Championship will follow a similar format to other GC32 Racing Tour events, with up to five races per day and a mix of reaching and upwind starts. However the Worlds will also include a new feature: The Cascade Sopromar Speed Challenge will be sailed over a course comprising two reaches with a gybe in between. The team recording the highest average speed for this will win the prize, generously donated by Cascade and Sopromar, of five double rooms for three nights at the 5 Star Cascade Wellness & Lifestyle Resort in Lagos. Martinho Fortunato, Commodore of the Club de Vela de Lagos welcomed the eleven GC32 teams: "It is with great enthusiasm that we in Lagos are preparing ourselves for the biggest sailing event happening in Portugal this year. We will have with us some of the world's best sailors, many of them involved with America's Cup, the biggest sailing event in the world. It is, with no doubt, an event that elevates Lagos and our region in the world of sailing." Teams competing at 2019 GC32 World Championship Alinghi (SUI) Arnaud Psarofaghis Argo (USA) Jason Carroll Black Star Sailing Team (SUI) Christian Zuerrer CHINAone NINGBO (CHN) Phil Robertson INEOS Rebels UK (GBR) Ben Ainslie NORAUTO (FRA) Franck Cammas Team Oman Air (OMA) Adam Minoprio Team Tilt (SUI) Sebastien Schneiter Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) Roman Hagara Zoulou (FRA) Erik Maris

NW OnBoard Race 2019 Bigger & Better

This year’s RYA North West OnBoard 6 Hour Race proved bigger and better than ever, with a record entry of 95 young sailors making up 17 teams from clubs across the North of England. The race which has now been running for over 10 years at Hollingworth Lake is proving to be a big success. The format is simple with two fleets: an Advanced fleet for sailors under 18 of any ability, and an OnBoard fleet for sailors under 16 with less than three years of sailing experience and at RYA Stage 2 level. Both fleets race together with teams spending six hours on the water with as many crew changeovers as they like in that time. On the day sailors were greeted by a gusty 12 to 15 knots of breeze which made for some challenging racing and a few capsizes. However all the young sailors dealt with the conditions in fantastic style, impressing the parents and instructors watching on. Conditions in the last couple of hours of the race dropped right off as the rain arrived. That meant the leading teams had to be fast in all conditions to win! In the advanced fleet the home team from Hollingworth initially took the lead but Bolton Sailing Club sailing a RS Feva loved the windy conditions and raced into a good lead, showing some great technique with the spinnaker. They were, however, being chased hard by the two Hollingworth teams. Just outside the top three, teams from Green Withens and West Lancashire Yacht Club were having a good battle, never too far behind the top pair. With an hour to go Bolton. who had held the lead for 31 laps, looked on course for the win but as the wind died off the RS Feva team from Hollingworth used their local knowledge well and just edged ahead to take the lead. The Bolton team pushed the home team all the way to the line but after 3,600 minutes of racing just two minutes separated them. The Hollingworth Lake Pico team just managed to edge out a quick finishing Green Withens team to claim the final podium spot. In the OnBoard fleet three teams battled neck and neck at the front throughout the race. With the lead changing all the time, it was hard to predict who was going to come out on top. However it was the team from Burwain Sailing Club sailing a Pico who eventually broke clear to take the win. Hollingworth Lake's Topper team came home second and Bolton’s Pico team third. These three teams also managed to finish ahead of three advanced fleet boats - an amazing achievement. The OnBoard fleet had great mini contests throughout the fleet, especially the teams from Debdale Outdoor Centre and Scotmans Flash Activities Centre who had a ding-dong battle during the whole race, earning a merit award for their fantastic efforts. Congratulations must also go to Debdale Outdoor Centre who entered four teams for the event, amazing work! Overall after a great day on the water. Teams managed to sail a total of 494 laps, covering a total distance of 326 miles: the same as the distance from Hollingworth in Rochdale to Cornwall or Fort William! We are looking forward to the 2020 race already!

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